Chapter 8
For the first time in his life, Jaylin discovered that time did actually fly when you were having fun.
Classes were so easy now, and he was keeping up with the work no problem while getting full marks on everything.
He did all the extra credit he could too, which helped bump his grades even more, and even that was kind of a breeze?
On top of everything, Diego had turned out to be pretty great.
He was kind of a talker, so during lulls in statistics class, Jaylin found out that Diego was in the culinary program but was also taking classes on business administration and restaurant management.
There was some crossover with Jaylin’s business law class which led to even more conversation, and next thing Jaylin knew, he and Diego were… friends.
Which certainly made Professor Edison’s class a little more bearable.
And school going so well gave Jaylin plenty of opportunity to take shifts at El Guanaco.
In just a couple weeks, he had more money coming in than he had ever had before, on top of always having leftovers to take home.
All the money he could spare got put into his savings, and watching that balance grow was…
It felt good. It felt really good.
It made Jaylin think about actually being able to break away from Brent sooner over later.
Because with everything else going well, Brent was the one dark cloud that still hung over his head.
A big, miserable dark cloud. Because Brent had caught onto the fact that Jaylin was somehow less miserable and stressed out, so he’d been doing his level best to demand more and more.
Longer and later stays. New positions. New toys.
There were handcuffs now. Every time Brent brought them out, Jaylin felt like he was going to be sick. Wearing them, feeling so utterly helpless —it made it so hard to breathe. Every time Brent put them on him, Jaylin was terrified they wouldn’t come off.
He couldn’t hold the sobs back anymore.
But Jaylin refused to let Brent burst his bubble. He had put up with a lot of shit in his life. He hadn’t made it this far just to buckle when some rich asshole pushed his boundaries.
It… it wasn’t easy. It was getting harder and harder with every day. He never felt rested. He never felt clean. He never felt safe.
It’s worth it. It’s worth it. It’s worth it.
***
“A sugar art exhibit?” Hiro asked, taking the flier that Jaylin handed him and looking down at it with apparent interest. They were meeting at the cafe again after Jaylin was done with Aditi, and Jaylin couldn’t help but start to feel like the cafe was their cafe.
Hiro had asked Jaylin out to meet him there so often that Jaylin just…
Kind of thought of it as special.
“Yeah,” Jaylin said, trying not to feel shy. “It’s kinda like glass sculpture but with sugar? Sort of the same principle of working with molten hot stuff that can burn your skin off. My friend Diego’s a part of the show, and he invited me. I thought, maybe uh, you’d be interested?”
“Of course I am.” Hiro smiled at him, looking so pleased. “I’d love to go.”
“Okay,” Jaylin said, smiling back. It was nice to have done something right. To have offered an activity Hiro would enjoy. “Great. And uh…”
“Yeah?”
“Diego recommended this documentary on sugar art,” Jaylin said in a burst. “If you maybe wanted to learn more about it? It’s pretty interesting–I only watched a little before I thought, um, that… maybe you’d want to watch it together?”
“Oh,” Hiro said, eyes bright. “Yeah. Yeah, I’d love that.”
Jaylin couldn't do anything about the warmth that flowed through him. “Okay.”
“Do you… would you want to watch it at my place?” Hiro asked. “Maybe an evening you don’t have class? Then we’d get it in before the exhibit next Saturday.”
“Yeah,” Jaylin stumbled to say. He’d been to Hiro’s place a few times now for star-gazing and dinner, but each invitation lit him up inside. “Y-yeah, that’d be great. Um. Tuesday or Thursday?” He’d just ask to not be scheduled at work whichever day Hiro picked.
“I could do Tuesday,” Hiro said with a grin. “Get to see you a little sooner.”
Jaylin’s cheeks heated so fast he was almost surprised Hiro didn’t comment on it. “Um,” he said. “You too. I-I mean it’ll be nice. To see you Tuesday.”
“Yeah?” Hiro asked, expression pleased.
“A-and to watch the sugar art documentary,” Jaylin added in a rush. “With you.”
“I’m looking forward to it,” Hiro said. “What would you like to have for dinner?”
“Have for dinner?” Jaylin parroted, confused by the change in topic.
“Of course,” Hiro said. “I’m not having you over Tuesday evening without feeding you. So you’ll have dinner with me, and then we’ll make popcorn for the documentary.”
“We will?” Jaylin asked, smiling now. “For a documentary?”
“Unless you have something against popcorn,” Hiro said. “It’s an entertainment food. I can also get candy, if you like that. Do you have a favorite movie theater candy?”
“I’ve never bought candy at a movie theater,” Jaylin said with a laugh. He barely went to the movies at all, but when he did go, he certainly didn’t spring for snacks. “I have no idea.”
Hiro looked considering. “No idea at all?”
Jaylin shook his head.
“Well, that’s okay,” Hiro said magnanimously. “We’ll find out then. What did you want to have for dinner?”
***
Much later, after Jaylin was showered and dressed and picking at his entree, Brent crooked a finger at him from across the table. “Come here, pet.”
Jaylin darted a look around. They were in a secluded corner of the restaurant, one Brent must have paid handsomely for, but still–
“Do I need to ask again?” Brent asked, voice silk.
Face burning with shame, Jaylin slipped out of his seat and walked around the small table.
He hesitated there, glancing at Brent’s face. Please don’t make me.
“Well?” Brent asked, patting his thigh.
Jaylin swallowed around acid in his throat as he went to sit on Brent’s lap.
It wasn’t like everyone in the restaurant hadn’t already taken one look at him and known what he was for anyway, Jaylin thought dully as Brent’s eyes glinted with cruel humor.
Brent pressed his lips to the side of Jaylin’s neck, and Jaylin angled his head for easier access, vision blurring.
He just needed to do this. One thing at a time.
It would be fine.
***
The first time Jaylin had visited Hiro’s home weeks ago, he’d expected to feel awkward.
But it had been nothing of the sort. Hiro had been warm and welcoming, and his house wasn’t…
intimidating. It was a comfortable size and tastefully decorated, full of beautiful art and personal photos, such a departure from Brent’s wealthy-but-minimal-chic aesthetic.
When Jaylin hadn’t been able to help looking around with interest, Hiro had given him an impromptu tour, talking Jaylin through different art pieces and telling stories of how Hiro acquired them while traveling.
Jaylin had found himself enjoying it immensely, and for once hadn’t been self-conscious about asking follow-up questions.
Hiro seemed perfectly happy to just talk to him. Like Jaylin was someone worth talking to. Spending time with.
Now, their easy conversation carried through their pizza dinner, and then Hiro was leading Jaylin into his living room, with its cozy looking couch and impressively sized TV.
“You make yourself comfortable,” Hiro said, handing Jaylin the bowl of popcorn he’d made. “And I’ll be right back. Just gotta grab something before we start the documentary.”
“Okay,” Jaylin said easily, taking a seat on the couch. He made sure to sit at the very end, to give Hiro plenty of room when he returned, and nibbled on a handful of popcorn.
“Alright,” Hiro said a moment later, coming back into the room carrying a large tote bag. “Here we go. Now you can figure out your favorite.”
“Figure out my—?” But then Hiro upended the tote bag onto the couch cushions next to Jaylin, and over a dozen different movie theater candy boxes rained down out of it.
“Did you buy out an entire candy store?” Jaylin stammered as he took in the boxes.
“Nope,” Hiro said cheerfully. “Just the candy section at the grocery store. Figured this was the easiest way for you to learn what you liked.”
“You didn’t—Hiro, you didn’t have to do that,” Jaylin said, still shocked. It was both incredibly thoughtful and incredibly silly for the man to have done this.
“Oh no,” Hiro said in mock seriousness. “I totally did. What if I want to take you out to a movie and we get there and then you have no idea what snack to pick? You might end up with something you don’t like, and we can’t have that.
” He picked up a box of snow caps and shook it.
“This way you can try everything. Process of elimination.”
“I-I don’t know if I can eat twelve boxes of candy,” Jaylin said, suddenly afraid that he’d be expected to. He hated wasting food and he didn’t want to disappoint Hiro and—
Hiro’s expression turned from playfully-serious to concerned.
“You’re not going to be eating twelve boxes of candy, Jaylin.
I mean, unless you really want to? You’re taking tastes from twelve boxes of candy.
You don’t have to finish anything. And you certainly don’t have to eat more of something if you don’t like it or don’t want to. ”
Jaylin’s mouth worked soundlessly for a moment. “Oh,” he managed after a too long pause. “I… thank you. For thinking of me. This is, um, this is really cool.”
Hiro took a seat on the couch, the mountain of candy in between them. He gave Jaylin a crooked smile. “Not too much?”
Jaylin shook his head. “N-no. And uh, hey I mean, it might get us into the mindset of watching people make sugar art.”
“That’s the spirit,” Hiro said, holding out a box of sour gummy worms.
***